E|----------Daniel-Kaczmarczyk--------
B|---------Guitar-----Lessons---------
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D|- www.facebook.com/dkugitarlessons -
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E|---- Ear training exercises --------
Ear training is pretty often omitted by beginning musicians, which is a very big mistake. Having a good ear for music helps us :
- Transcribe music – play what you hear
- Hear better – that means – play better!
- Communicate better with musicians, without checking the tabs, or sheets
And it’s only a top of an iceberg of the abilities you gain by practicing your ears. It’s the most valuable skill any musician can get. Ears for musicians are the eyes for a painter. Just imagine how would painter paint if he would be blind, or color-blind?
So if you want to train your ears, you should start with memorizing the sound of intervals. Method goes like this.
1. Pick an interval. From unison to octave. Here you can find Intervals on guitar fretboard
Let’s take a major third.
2. Figure out how to play it on guitar – there are always at least two comfortable options.
The first one
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A|---------4---------
E|------5------------
The second one
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E|------5--9---------
3. Once you played it – catch the feeling of it, catch the sound that it creates and therefore – feel the interval. Every-one has a distinct sound and feel, so after some aural training it becomes clear which one you hear. Play it ascending and descending, on every place on the fretboard, also play it harmonically – two notes ringing together.
4. Remember, that learning intervals take time, so don’t be discouraged when you are not be hearing it after one practice session – this really takes time!
5. Practice with every interval. This will take months for you to do it really good, so stay motivated – the results are worth it. After you will have the sound of intervals memorized, you will be able to play any melody by ear.
I really recommend you to find a good theory book and have a good lesson about intervals – so you will know all the theoretical background about what you are learning.
I wish you best in your musical journeys! Daniel Kaczmarczyk, lodzgitara@gmail.com
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